November 14, 2024

Hawk girls score third-place finish at 1A state qualifying meet

L-S earns five bids into state track and field meet

By Troy Hyde

Lynnville-Sully junior Greenlee Smock won the 3,000-meter run and earned a spot at the state track and field meet. She also will anchor the 4x800 and distance medley relays on the blue oval. (Troy Hyde/Newton News)

CORYDON — Powered by four wins and eight top-three finishes, Lynnville-Sully’s girls track and field team placed third at its Class 1A state qualifier on Thursday.

The Hawks locked up four automatic state berths after the wins and gained one more state qualifier a few days later.

L-S finished second and third twice each and also piled up plenty of top-five finishes.

“I’m proud of the efforts and the girls kept working to the end,” L-S girls track and field head coach Kevin Johnson said. “There were a lot of strong performances. The Hawks did a great job of battling the heat and competing all night long.”

Greenlee Smock will be a part of three of the four entries that L-S registered on the track.

Smock qualified for the 3,000-meter run and will anchor the qualifying 4x800 and distance medley relay teams.

The other two events that made it to state are the 4x100 relay and Abby Squires in the discus.

Lynnville-Sully's Reagan McFarland, right, and Sydney Jansen will compete in multiple relays at the state track and field meet this week. (Troy Hyde/Newton News)

Wayne scored 185 points to win the championship on its home track. Mount Ayr was the runner-up with 121 points and L-S finished third with 103.

North Mahaska (58) and Morman Trail (37) completed the top five and the rest of the 14-team field included Twin Cedars (36), Lamoni (32), Murray (31), Southeast Warren (26), East Union (26), Melcher-Dallas (26), Moravia (25), Seymour (24) and Moulten-Udell (6).

Smock won the 3,000 with a time of 12 minutes, 56.47 seconds.

She then anchored the 4x800 relay team to a win. That foursome of Olivia Norrish, Callista Hackert, Kinsley Tice and Smock finished in 10:57.32.

The winning distance medley relay team finished in 4:46.78 with Carsyn McFarland, Aliya James, Tice and Smock.

McFarland and James also opened the winning 4x100 relay team and that unit included Sydney Jansen and Reagan McFarland. They finished the race in 52.6 seconds.

Squires was one of the two runner-ups. Her best throw in the discus earned her an at-large berth to the state meet and it was marked at 107 feet, 2 inches.

The 4x100 relay team also teamed up in the 4x200 but had a different order. Carsyn McFarland, James, McFarland and Jansen placed second in 1:54.86.

The Hawks were third twice. Smock grabbed the bronze in the 1,500, finishing in 5:33.83. Norrish took fifth in 5:56.23.

Lynnville-Sully senior Aliya James, left, takes the baton from sophomore Carsyn McFarland during a meet earlier this season. The Hawk duo will compete in multiple relays at the state track and field meet this week. (Troy Hyde/Newton News)

The other third came in the sprint medley relay where Reagan McFarland, Morgan Jones, James and Majesta Vos finished in 2:08.33.

Jansen (4-6) was fourth in the high jump, Vos (1:09.36) placed fourth in the 400 and Carsyn McFarland (29.23) finished fourth in the 200.

The final top-six finish came from Tice in the 800. She was sixth overall with a time of 2:52.59.

The Iowa High School State Track and Field Championships inside Drake Stadium in Des Moines kick off Thursday and run through Saturday.

The Class 1A portion of the meet competes in the morning sessions on Thursday and Friday.

Smock’s 3,000 time ranks in the top 15 and the 4x100 relay also enters the weekend in the top 15.